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Beyond Carbon, Beyond Reports

Climate change is a sustainability issue that entails more than concerns about carbon and energy. In order to address these issues organizations will need to do more than merely creating sustainability reports. Solving the climate challenge will involve concerted action by governments, international organizations, businesses, investors, civil society and citizens. GRI helps organizations manage the full range of climate risks so they can move beyond reports and take action.

Business action on climate change

Non-state actors including business have a vital role to play in addressing climate change. In order to act, businesses need to first understand their contribution to the problem. Since 1997, GRI has provided metrics on climate change and these disclosures are among the most frequently reported by organizations that use .GRI Sustainability Reporting Standards (GRI Standards). GRI Standards provide a common language for organizations to measure, manage and communicate about their use of carbon, energy, water and a wide range of other resources.

A catalyst to move beyond reportsAs the architect of the world’s non-financial information, GRI is using its expertise, its partnerships and its trusted reputation to transform the way businesses, governments and other stakeholders use sustainability information to make better decisions. Solutions to the climate challenge will require innovations in sustainability. In order to innovate, businesses will need real-time, high quality and comparable data to empower sustainable decisions. Moving beyond the sustainability report itself and liberating this information is one of GRI’s four strategic priorities, announced earlier this year. Businesses are taking action, but a transformational effort is required by all actors to unlock the real value of sustainability data

GRI and climate policyGRI works to enable smart policy on sustainability issues including climate change. GRI actively engages with international organizations such as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the UN Environment Program, the UN Global Compact, the World Economic Forum, as well as the Carbon Disclosure Project, the World Resources Institute and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)

GRI supports the work of the FSB climate disclosure task force, and we welcome the phase 1 report. Climate change is about more than just carbon and energy, and we are encouraged that financial institutions are becoming more aware of the wide range of risks posed by this pressing global challenge.

This is an important first step in the process by which the financial sector can become more inclusive and sustainable, and GRI supports the task force in its ambitions. We continue to encourage the TCFD to include the input of all stakeholders in its work, and to leverage existing reporting standards already in use around the world. We also support the TCFD's focus on standardization of the industry around important sustainability risks, such as climate change, as an important step towards a more sustainable economy and world.